The Reward For A Dreamer
by Kurissyma san Tybalt
Summary: SPOILERS FOR CHAPTER 108 forbid me from writing an adequate summary, so I'll let you read on for yourself. Please, DO NOT READ if you have not completed the manga yet! Roy x Riza pairing, post-manga oneshot


**A/N. IMPORTANT: ****SPOILERS** FOR THE FINAL CHAPTER (108) OF FMA! Do not read if you have not finished the series, I repeat: **Do NOT READ** if you have NOT FINISHED THE **MANGA** SERIES! With that aside, this is what immediately came to mind upon finishing this amazing series, and it is based on the fact that Roy never explicitly tells Riza that he can see again in the manga =) Now, without further ado… XXXX Becky

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**The Reward for a Dreamer**

It was with a sense of great apprehension that Riza rang the doorbell of her colonel's home once again. She'd done her hair up, put on a nice sundress, and applied scads of flesh-toned make-up to the wound at her throat all before she'd realized that he wouldn't be able to see her, and now, standing ready to meet him socially for the first time since the battle, she feared (or perhaps hoped) her efforts would be yet betrayed by the perfume she wore.

"Hello, sir," she greeted him as brightly as she was able as he opened the door, having thought carefully about this and decided not to offend him by assuming that his military career was over. However, his kind words in reply did little to reassure her.

"'Roy' is fine," he mumbled, and waved her in.

As Riza entered the room she took the opportunity to watch him, knowing that he couldn't see her do so, and found him looking much better than she'd seen him last. This time, at least, he had been able to shave successfully without cutting himself, had brushed his hair back neatly, and buttoned each button of his dress shirt to its correct partner. "You look well, Roy," she told him truthfully. "How are you holding up?"

Roy grinned at her diplomacy. "Much better now," he promised, coming to sit down beside her, and though their proximity made her warm inside, Riza kept certain thoughts at bay with the realization that he probably didn't realize how closely he was sitting next to her without the use of his eyes.

"Have you been getting much out of the house?" she asked, her cheeks pinkening as she did so. "I see you're not using the cane…?"

"I know my house well enough without it," Roy reassured her, and Riza's blush only darkened at that.

"Yes, well… You, ah, called me over here… Roy?" Beside her, Roy shifted a little on the couch to face toward her, surprising Riza. "Roy—"

"You're so beautiful, Riza," he whispered, throwing her well for a loop. "I never realized it until I couldn't see you anymore but it's true. I've missed seeing your face."

_His_ _own_ face was growing suspiciously closer to hers, but Riza told herself that this was coincidence too— that he didn't _know_ the effect he was having on her… _did he_? For a brief moment she was almost glad that he couldn't see her blush, then cursed the thought. "It's still the same as you remember," she promised quietly, and then jumped as his hand came up to touch her chin, as it took her a moment to realize that he was feeling the contours of her face and verifying her statement. His thumb brushed her lips…

"No, it's sadder…" he murmured unhappily, and then his hand trailed down her neck over her wound. Meeting the thick make-up applied there, he rubbed his thumb and forefinger rid of it and shook his head. "Still hurt…"

Roy's hand dipped a bit then and Riza almost laughed as she caught it in hers, bringing it away from her chest and settling it in her lap firmly. "Still the same pervert," she sighed fondly. And then the question she most feared to ask: "What'll you do now, Roy?"

This, he considered for a moment. "Did you get the message I sent the team?" he asked, his blind eyes fixed intently, impossibly on hers.

"Well, I _got_ it, but—"

"It's as I said: I'm not done with the military just yet."

Riza's lips pressed together in a deep frown as Roy peeled his hand away from hers and moved it up into her hair, playing with the loose end of her ponytail dismissively. "Roy, don't be reckless," she sighed. "You need to think realistically about what you can do for the military now. I— I can't be your eyes forever, you know."

Riza's breath caught as her colonel's rough hands glided gently across her neck and shoulders, bringing her forward so that their foreheads almost touched.

"I asked you to continue following me," he reminded her quietly, his lips softly brushing Riza's ear lobe as he spoke, causing a shiver to run through her. "You said you always would…"

"Roy, I'm not strong enough. I can't protect you! You've seen that already, haven't you?" she sighed in response, and it was here that she finally broke down into the tears she had forced back so many times, and Roy brought her fully into his arms. "It's my fault you lost your sight. It's because you wouldn't give me up, you _fool_!"

As she cried, Roy's look remained a sad mix of grave and thoughtful as he comforted her, gently stroking her hair back as she rode out the persistent waves of tears and chest-wracking sobs. "I wish I didn't have to see you cry," he whispered gently.

As she withdrew to compose herself, Roy's eyes were big, black, and tender on her own.

"If you could see me I wouldn't be crying," she reminded him, wiping her eyes on the back of her sleeve sadly. "…I'm sorry for crying."

Roy shook his head understandingly, not yet willing to entirely release her from his arms. "Will you follow me?" he asked, and Riza nodded through her tears, whispering the words of her promise so many years ago:

"Even into hell."

Roy smiled, almost imperceptibly and got to his feet, still holding Riza's hand in his… And then he was on one knee before her and she gasped.

"Roy—!"

"I meant what I said," he promised her, eyes dead set on her own. "I never realized how beautiful you were until I couldn't see it anymore and, now that I can again, I want to see that face every day for the rest of my life. So please marry me, Riza."

"Roy, I don't understand—!"

In seconds Roy had let go of her hand, withdrawn a ring from his back pocket and reached exactly for where that hand now rested on her knee, as easily as though he could see it laying there. The ring itself was then slid on with incredible precision, and it was perfect…

"_How?_" Riza whispered weakly as the tears threatened to overflow once again, and Roy simply replied:

"Marcoh." Then, "I was wrong, Riza… God didn't punish me with blindness because I was a dreamer, he only used it as a temporary means to prove which dream was the most important for me to follow, and this is it." Squeezing her hand he entreated her again: "Please marry me," and when she said yes he finally understood why he hadn't cared one bit when General Grumman had made Fuhrer before him.


End file.
